Seattle Seahawks Playing to Personnel Strengths in Ryan Grubb's Offense

The Seahawks haven't yet started clicking on all cylinders on offense, but early returns in Ryan Grubb's system have been encouraging despite shaky line play.

Sep 15, 2024; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; Seattle Seahawks wide receiver DK Metcalf (14) runs the ball against New England Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez (0) in the second half at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images / David Butler II-Imagn Images

RENTON, Wash. - Making the leap to the NFL for the first time, in many ways, Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb inherited an offensive unit offering parallels to his record-setting Washington Huskies attacks from the past two seasons.

Most notably, after lighting up the skies in Montlake with a trio of future NFL draft picks at receiver last year in Rome Odunze, Jalen McMillan, and Ja'Lynn Polk, Grubb returned to the Pacific Northwest after an incredibly brief stint in Tuscaloosa, Alabama to work with as close to an NFL equivalent for that group as possible. Aside from three-time 1,000-yard receiver DK Metcalf and iconic wideout Tyler Lockett, he also would have the opportunity to work with a rising star in Jaxon Smith-Njigba, giving him an exciting trifecta to build his offense around once again.

While the offense has yet to explode in regard to putting points on the board, early results have been quite encouraging pairing Grubb with veteran quarterback Geno Smith and Seattle's immensely talented receiving corps, including Metcalf and Smith-Njigba becoming the first pair of Seahawks to catch 10 passes and post 100-plus receiving yards in the same game in a 23-20 win over New England last weekend.

"Obviously we're really blessed with the guys that we have here skill wise and I think that it puts a lot of stress back on the defense if they are trying to shut one guy down," Grubb said on Thursday. "I think it gets really obvious if there are brackets on one player or they're trying to take a guy away, you know that there's going to be the ability to open up the other lanes and I think that Geno [Smith] does a good job of understanding the progression and when the primary is one guy versus another guy."

Though it remains early in the season, Grubb has done a fantastic job so far of maximizing his personnel in his first two games in the sky box. Per Sumer Sports charting, the Seahawks currently rank ninth in 11 personnel usage with three receivers, one running back, and one tight end in the formation (75 percent), allowing more opportunities for Metcalf, Lockett, and Smith-Njigba to all be on the field at the same time.

In comparison, Grubb's predecessor Shane Waldron, who now resides as the play caller in Chicago, only used 11 personnel 63 percent of the time in 2023, which ranked 17th in the NFL. Interestingly, that was a higher rate than Waldron's second season as coordinator on Pete Carroll's staff in 2022 when the team ranked 25th in 11 personnel usage (53.4 percent), but in his defense, that was before Smith-Njigba arrived on the scene as a first-round pick.

Even after a quiet first game, Metcalf's eruption in Foxboro vaulted him to 158 yards receiving in the first two weeks, the 12th most in the NFL ahead of the likes of Dolphins star Tyreek Hill and Lions star Amon-Ra St. Brown. Aside from his typical home running hitting ability demonstrated on a 56-yard touchdown last weekend, in a changeup from previous seasons, he has also been utilized more frequently as a weapon in the quick game to create with the ball in his hands, racking up 65 yards after the catch so far.

As for Lockett, the 10th year veteran hasn't had as many targets in the first two games as Metcalf, but he has still been incredibly reliable when Smith has thrown his direction. Incredibly efficient with nine targets, he ranks 14th in the NFL with six first down receptions on eight total receptions, including a clutch one-handed grab late in regulation against the Broncos in the season opener and a 16-yard catch in overtime that set up Jason Myers for the game-winning kick last Sunday.

But no player has benefited more from Grubb's arrival than Smith-Njigba, who had a much-anticipated coming out party against New England with a career-high 12 receptions for 117 yards and has seen his snap percentage skyrocket from 64 to 82 percent compared to 2023. Thus far, while he has been a factor in the short passing and screen game, his average depth of target has jumped up more than three yards compared to his rookie season, and his ability to manufacture yardage after the catch proved invaluable on Sunday with Seattle's run game being stagnant.

"In situations like that, you got to be willing to find other ways to control the football and time," Grubb said of using Smith-Njigba as an extension of the run game. "There were some times when it was frustrating, I felt bad. We had a couple of three and outs and that's hard on Mike [Macdonald] and the defense and that's certainly not what we want. We want to be able to hold the clock and take care of some time, but if you can get high percentage completions, which Geno [Smith] certainly was, you have to certainly substitute that."

In totality, in a revelation that shouldn't take a rocket scientist to understand, the Seahawks have been a vastly more effective offense when Metcalf, Lockett, and Smith-Njigba have all been on the field at the same time. Per Douglas Clawson of CBS, they have averaged 6.7 yards per play with those three all on the field. If any of them subs out, however, that number plummets a full three yards to 3.7.

Given the depth Seattle has at receiver with capable targets such as Jake Bobo and Laviska Shenault on the 53-man roster, Grubb will have to figure out how to improve efficiency whenever Metcalf, Lockett, or Smith-Njigba checks out for a play. The team should still be able to move the football through the air with two of the big three on the field along with other complementary targets.

At the root of the issue, the Seahawks still have a lot of work to do improving the play of their offensive line, which ranks 31st in Pro Football Focus' pass blocking grade (53.3), 31st in ESPN's Pass Block Win Rate metric (38 percent), and 31st in ESPN's Run Block Win Rate metric (65 percent). This has not only limited Grubb's ability to attack downfield as much as he would like to his arsenal of receivers, but also took the run game out of the equation for extended periods.

Despite the protection and run blocking concerns, however, Smith has been masterful excelling in spite of the pressure for Seattle, deftly moving the pocket to create time to get the ball to his receivers while completing 73.9 percent of his passes. For his part, Grubb deserves his share of credit for scheming around those issues in the trenches with the quick passing game to help his quarterback out as well, and he expects the line will continue to progress as center Connor Williams and the rest of the group builds chemistry.

"It's always a work in progress," Grubb said of Seattle's line. "I've always felt like that's the situation anytime, I felt like that at Washington and I think our best football is ahead of us at the offensive line spot and I think any good offense would tell you their offensive line's got to grow during the season and I think they will. I mean Connor's only two games in with this offense and I think he'll continue to get better and I think he does an outstanding job, but those guys are still gelling. I don't think there's any question and when they get that down, I think their best balls ahead of them."

Sitting at 2-0 going into Sunday's home matchup with the Dolphins, as Grubb acknowledged, the Seahawks are far from a polished machine on offense with plenty of question marks to address moving forward. But if early signs serve as any indicator, he will be looking to get the ball to his trio of playmakers on the outside as much as possible while moving all three players all over the formation, and it doesn't take a rocket scientist to know that gives the team the best shot at success in the rugged NFC West.

Assuming Smith continues to thrive in Grubb's system and the offensive line comes together as the coordinator believes it will to open up more deep shot opportunities as well as a more consistent run game, with a tandem of receivers in Metcalf, Lockett, and Smith-Njigba that few other NFL teams can match at the center of the attack, the potential remains for Seattle to build an offensive juggernaut capable of carrying the team to a division title this season.